The post is a reprint of a letter that was sent to Tesla purchasers on December 21, as a follow-up to a town hall meeting for Tesla owners that took place on December 12. About 100 people, including those who called in, participated in the meeting, according to Drori.

The main goal is "to put the Tesla Roadster on the road as soon as possible," Drori said in the letter.

The transmission is the main source of the Tesla's delay. A durable transmission that can maintain the original claims of 0-60 mph in 4 seconds is just not ready. In the interest of getting cars into the hands of owners, the company has decided to deliver the Tesla with a transmission that enables the car to do 0-60 in 5.7 seconds. Once the company has perfected a higher performance transmission that enables the Tesla to achieve 0-60 mph in 4 seconds, it will then retrofit all the delivered cars with the new transmission at the company's expense.

Tesla also addressed questions about overstated EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) driving range figures. The independent lab that performed the EPA's tests miscalibrated one of its tools, resulting in an inflated range, according to Drori. Since then, the car has been retested and the EPA now puts the Tesla's driving range at a combined average of 221 miles per charge. Tesla, meanwhile, still stands by its "real world" driving figures of 267 miles per charge in the city and 165 miles per charge on the highway, said Drori. Tesla also plans to retest the car closer to production.

While Tesla hopes plans to be in full production by summer 2008, it expects "some number of cars to be delivered in early 2009."

About the author

In a software-driven world, it's easy to forget about the nuts and bolts. Whether it's cars, robots, personal gadgetry or industrial machines, Candace Lombardi examines the moving parts that keep our world rotating. A journalist who divides her time between the United States and the United Kingdom, Lombardi has written about technology for the sites of The New York Times, CNET, USA Today, MSN, ZDNet, Silicon.com, and GameSpot. She is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not a current employee of CNET.
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